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The Sociological Substance and Actuality of the Authoritarian Personality ✉ Benno Herzog 1

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The Sociological Substance and Actuality of the Authoritarian Personality ✉ Benno Herzog 1 ARTICLE https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00819-5 OPEN Authoritarianism as pathology of recognition: the sociological substance and actuality of the authoritarian personality ✉ Benno Herzog 1 The rise of the notions of authoritarianism and the authoritarian personality is directly linked to pathologies of early modernity and to social constellations that systematically produce 1234567890():,; dispositions of character that ultimately form the base of Nazi fascism. The aim of this article, thus, is to explore sociological actuality, i.e., the explanatory power and informative value of the concepts of authoritarianism and the authoritarian personality. Therefore, throughout the article, authoritarianism is framed as a social, i.e., relational approach, similar to that of recognition. However, as authoritarianism does not point towards autonomy, it can be read as a pathology of recognition. The text starts by presenting authoritarianism and authoritarian personality as introduced to the academic debate by early Critical Theory, including a description of the historical and intellectual conditions of the time. It then explores three essential elements of these concepts and how they have changed from then to now; namely, authorities, authoritarian measures, and psychological dispositions used to accept both. The sociological tools thus laid open are then used to respond to current questions about authoritarianism using the example of the impact of experts on crisis discourses. Pointing towards discursive mediation, I ask when and how the need to rely on experts fosters authoritarianism. There are basically two ways of understanding authoritarianism as still present in our society. The first is as a backward-leaning ideology of the good old times. Especially in politics, we can find a wish to overcome complex democratic decision-making procedures with strong, authoritarian leadership. The second form involves understanding authoritarianism not as a personal authority but as a swarm authority in the modern and (digital) panopticon. This pathology of recognition leads to alienated relations with others as mere anonymous providers of evaluations. ✉ 1 Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain. email: [email protected] HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES COMMUNICATIONS | (2021) 8:135 | https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00819-5 1 ARTICLE HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES COMMUNICATIONS | https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00819-5 Introduction he notions of authoritarianism and the authoritarian primary enemy. World War I, or the Great War as it was then personality are “thick concepts”. They not only describe known, added a deeply worrying undertone to the question of T fi speci c social constellations. While the critical point human capacities. Instead of framing the question of what arising from these notions is deeply linked to the scientific humans will be capable of doing in the future as a question full of explication of fascism, both concepts at the same time serve as emancipatory hope, a new form of anthropological skepticism normative critiques: societies should not become authoritarian and fear arose. The use of poison gas as a means of indis- and should be organized such that they do not promote the criminate mass destruction gave the question of human capa- creation of authoritarian personalities or at least prevent these cities a frightening undertone. The history of humanity no longer from becoming hegemonic. had to be read as a success story of emancipation.1 From this In the notorious use of the Institute of Social Research point on, it was possible to clearly perceive the barbaric potential (Adorno, 1973; Horkheimer, 2005), both concepts refer to a of modern societies. pathology of capitalist modernity. The more psychological notion The second event that substantially changed western Marx- of the authoritarian personality is not meant to be a term for the ism was the Russian Revolution. The main impact of this event individualistic critique of certain deficiencies in one’s character. on the international working class surely was that of confirming Moreover, the concept is closely linked to social constellations that the theory of the possibility and even inevitability of proletarian systematically produce dispositions of character that ultimately revolution. However, the aftermath of the revolution cast doubt form the base of Nazi fascism. In other words, the starting and on the emancipatory praxis of the Soviet Union. Not only the endpoints of the critique of authoritarian personalities are not “revolutionary” elimination of tsarist and bourgeois social individuals but social constellations. In this sense, the notions of actors but also the persecution of revolutionary proletarian “character” or “personality”, although inspired by psychoanalysis, actors such as anarchists and Trotskyists started to divide the have to be understood as sociological. The critique of author- European left. The same can be said for the start of the itarian personalities, thus, is a social critique and a critique of discrediting of critical left intellectuals such as Georg Lukács authoritarian constellations, i.e., of authoritarianism. and many others. Skepticism about the emancipatory character However, in its current use, especially outside of the scientific of the Soviet Union as a model for emancipation culminated community in public discourse, the notion of authoritarianism with the so-called Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, also known as the often seems to beg a question. It is used without considering the Hitler-Stalin Pact. Radical proletarians fighting fascism, often social conditions of authoritarianism and describes all kinds of violently, across Europe thus felt that they had lost their most politics from right-wing to left-wing populism and martial powerful ally. militarism to COVID-19 politics. In addition, we cannot over- The impossibility of reading history easily as a success story look the fact that some of the constellations described in the first of progress and emancipation and doubts about the emancipa- part of the last century and that gave rise to the social- tory potential of the working class forced two main changes to psychological character of the authoritarian personality has Marxist theory. These doubts shaped from this point on the undergone important changes (see, Decker and Brähler, 2018; direction of unorthodox Marxism, such as that institutionalized Henkelmann et al., 2020). within the Institute of Social Research of Frankfurt with its The aim of this article, thus, is to explore sociological actuality, critical theory, followed by an interdisciplinary group of mainly i.e., the explanatory power and informative value of the concepts academic intellectuals. Classical Marxism, with its historical of authoritarianism and the authoritarian personality. Therefore, materialism, seemed incapable of understanding why the throughout the article, I frame authoritarianism as a social, i.e., working class would act against its own objective interests. relational approach, similar to that of recognition. However, as The two main approaches that critical theory introduced to authoritarianism does not point towards autonomy, it can be read classical Marxism were cultural and psychological (or psycho- as a pathology of recognition. analytical or sociopsychological). I start by presenting authoritarianism and authoritarian per- The concept of culture was needed to understand that the sonality as introduced to the academic debate by early Critical material forces of capitalism do not act unmediated upon Theory, including a description of the historical and intellectual individuals but find themselves embedded in—and mediated conditions of the time. In the second part, I explore three essential through—specific cultures. In sociology, Max Weber’s thesis of elements of these concepts and how they have changed from then the influence of Protestant culture on the increase in capitalism to now. Namely, I examine authorities, authoritarian measures (Weber, 2002) stands out prominently for this type of concern. In and psychological dispositions used to accept both. The socio- the environment of the Frankfurt School, we find, for example, logical tools thus laid open are then used to respond to current Lukács (2000) with his analysis of the interplay between the questions about authoritarianism using the example of the impact economic sphere and other spheres of social life, such as the legal of experts on crisis discourses. Pointing towards discursive sphere, and Kracauer (2004) and his interest in the relations mediation, I ask when and how the need to rely on experts fosters between (visual) culture, mass society and modern capitalism. authoritarianism. Psychological approaches were introduced to understand the irrational behaviors of humans, especially of the working class. From Freud (see especially 2002) to Fromm (e.g., 1997) and The thesis of the authoritarian personality Marcuse (e.g., 1991), irrational elements of human behavior were Historical background. The dedication to the authoritarian (also) explained by the influence of pathological social constella- personality of early Critical Theory has to be understood in light tions on the personalities of modern individuals. of the crisis of Marxism, which could be said to have started roughly with World War I and culminated at the end of the first half of the century. Two crucial moments must be mentioned. The thesis. All three elements, the classical
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